Naruto : Lost
by manywheels
Summary: A strange mission sets off Nara Shikamaru's suspicions about his village, ones he has been harbouring for a very long time. Along with Aburame Shino, he will try to plumb the depths of Konoha's secret past. AU, no yaoi, no pairings at all.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I totally and utterly diss any claims that I own any part of Naruto, any of Kishimoto's other works, the Day of the Jackal, or Harry Potter and Leopard-walk-up-to-Dragon.

* * *

_'I'm not missing-nin, ANBU-san. I never really belonged to a village, did I? My mother was a clanless chuunin from Kumo, though she never talked about it. My father used to be a citizen of Konoha, true, but he always said that he belonged to the Whirling Tides. And they were really too young to have a child, though they did it anyway. If there _were_ ninja who could claim allegiance to me, they're either dead or don't give a shit about me. Uzushiogakure was destroyed by the Kyuubi no Kitsune decades ago, and we all know Kumo doesn't care about no-name weaklings who leave it. I really don't know what you want from me.'_

Nara Shikamaru went over the memory in his head one last time. The Hokage would not be pleased with the report, but when was he ever? The mission was supposed to be an easy one, it was only C-ranked and far under his pay grade, but he'd taken it anyway. He thought it'd be a break from the endless recon missions they carried out on Kumo and Suna, they _still _didn't trust the Godaime Kazekage despite all that he had done for them, and he'd even get to see a little bit of the countryside. Ha! So much for that notion.

He thought back to the days of the Academy, when the Sandaime was still in power and the only thing that mattered was whether or not something was troublesome. That had all changed the year he'd graduated. Shikamaru had no idea why, and he'd spent a _lot_ of time trying to work it out. It wasn't as if the village had changed completely with the coming of the Godaime. They were still training children at the Academy with that joke they called a syllabus, their gate-guards were still so laid back the Sage of the Six Paths could walk in and they wouldn't notice, and the Sandaime's grandson got away with more pranks than a trickster spirit with a grudge. No, on the surface everything had stayed the same. It was only at the very highest levels that things had really changed.

The ANBU became much more disciplined. Once they had been used for anything and everything, the Hokage's personal tools to shape the village as he saw fit. Now they were focused only on one goal, to secure threats emanating from both within and without the village. The Godaime's ANBU were polished weapons, and all the he needed to do was to aim them in the right direction. The normal policing of the village that they had absorbed after the collapse of the Uchiha had been given back to a new military police wing, consisted of both retired-nin and civilians, and the endless amount of paperwork they'd had to go through had been forcibly streamlined into the Information and Recon wing. By the time he had been approached, the ANBU of the Leaf were no longer the jacks-of-all-trades they once were. Now they were specialised weapons of Konoha's intent, and Konoha had done much better for it.

The hospital soared to new heights. They had found Senju Tsunade-hime and persuaded her, though Shikamaru rather suspected the Hokage had forced her, to come back and help the village she once called home. Once under the oversight of the Slug Princess, recovery rates soared and mortality was the lowest it had been for years. She had even brought her apprentice with her, and Shizune-san had been integral to the development of Konoha's new medic corps. One of the first members of the corps had even been a member of his own graduating class, and Haruno Sakura was now being tutored by the Sannin on a personal basis. It had left Ino more than a little cheesed off, but he suspected his friend was just a little bit proud of her one-time rival, too.

'Deer! The Hokage is expecting you in fifteen minutes! Get your damn report ready _now_!' bellowed Ibiki, breaking Shikamaru out of his reverie.

'Yeah, yeah, don't get so worked up. I'm almost done here.' Shikamaru replied, getting up from his desk and gathering his papers.

'Kid, it might not seem like it, but this report is _very_ important to Godaime-sama.' Ibiki said with a glare.

'Since when does the Hokage care about a civilian whose father might have once been enrolled in our academy, anyway? I can think of a dozen people I went to the Academy with who moved out of Konoha and had kids, and we're not investigating any of those, are we?' Shikamaru said.

'It is _not_ up to you to decide what the Hokage does and does not care about. You're not here to ask questions, you're here to help answer _his_ questions, and if you don't get to the tower double quick, you might find that you no longer have the ability to ask _any_ questions at all, understand?' Ibiki said in little more than a whisper. Serving under the Head of Torture and Interrogation had taught Shikamaru a few things, and one of them was that Morino Ibiki could make a crocodile cry tears of genuine grief with nothing more than a well-placed glare.

'Yes, Ibiki-sensei. I apologise for my impertinence.' he said in what he hoped was a suitably conciliatory tone.

'Whatever, kid. Just get the hell out of here. You're done for the day after you give in the report.'

He was done? But it was barely noon! Maybe Ibiki liked him more than he let on, then. Shikamaru grinned at his boss, put on his mask, and disappeared with a flurry of leaves. Just one more hurdle to negotiate, and he was free!

* * *

He arrived at the Hokage tower a few seconds later, the grin still on his face, though the receptionist couldn't see it through his mask.

'Can I see him now?' he asked.

The receptionist looked up at him, and then looked at one of the guards to the Hokage's door, who nodded.

'I think he's in a meeting, but he won't mind the interruption', she said.

'That's ok, I'll wait' Shikamaru replied, and took a seat on the couch.

The chuunin guards looked at him as if he'd just grown a second head. ANBU had a reputation for never relaxing on the job, but Shikamaru loved breaking the stereotype. Just as he closed his eyes he heard the shouting from inside the office.

'- YOU DON'T HAVE A CHOICE!' That sounded like Tsunade-hime.

'I'M THE HOKAGE, AND NO ONE TELLS ME WHAT CHOICES I HAVE!' And that was Godaime-sama. He was glad he'd not stepped into _that_ confrontation, then.

With that, the Slug-princess stormed out of the Hokage's office, and looked angrily at Shikamaru. 'If you're waiting to give him that report, maybe you'd like to tell him to eat it, too.' she said, before leaving.

Shikamaru blinked, perplexed.

'Hokage-sama isn't eating enough, isn't sleeping enough-' the one with the bandage, Kotetsu?, started.

'- and needs a break from running this village before it kills him' the one with the fringe, Izumo, finished.

'At any rate, the only way she'll get him to take one is to chain him to his bed' the receptionist said with a sad smile.

'Deer, Jiraiya-sama will see you now.'

* * *

The Hokage was not in a good mood, and when the Hokage wasn't in a good mood, an unaware and unlucky ANBU tended to pay the price. Shikamaru prayed to whatever kami were watching him at that moment to have mercy on him, and more importantly on his poor report, and in return he would burn ten, no, fifteen sticks of incense at the temple the next chance he got.

He walked into the Hokage's office and saluted to his military leader, who only seemed to notice him after a few minutes.

'Hm? Oh, yes, Deer, was it?' The man had an odd habit of appearing out-of-sorts at crucial times, but the glint of intelligence in his eyes never faded. Jiraiya was one of the Three and the Fifth Hokage for a reason, and anyone who wanted to survive an interview with him would do well not to underestimate him.

'Sir, yes, sir!' Shikamaru immediately got rid of his trademark slouch, and his eyes sharpened in a manner that would have been visible if anyone could have seen underneath his mask.

'You're the one I gave the recon mission to, aren't you? The girl in River Country?'

'Yes, Hokage-sama.'

'I know you have a written report for me, and I'll read it in due time, but give me your verbal now. And Nara-san, every detail is crucial.'

_Shit. _Nothing to worry about, just make sure that he didn't contradict a single detail from the report and Hokage-sama won't have a problem. At least, that's what Shikamaru needed to believe. Slipping into formal ANBU speech, he started his report.

'Sir. I left Konoha a week ago under orders as directed by the mission log. Target was a sixteen-year-old girl living in the Kesen Province of Kawa no Kuni, in a minor town called Shiwa. Said girl was the daughter of a former citizen of Konoha whom Information and Recon suspected of having classified information regarding the village.' _Despite the boy having left Konoha at age ten,_ he added mentally.

'The objective was to ascertain whether the information was indeed in the hands of the father, whether he had told it to his daughter, or anyone else, and whether we could plug the leak before it became too big' _Why we didn't just go after the father, they'll never tell me_.

'I passed through the border and arrived at Shiwa without incident, at which point I shifted to my cover of wandering swordsman.'

'This was three days after you left Konoha?' Jiraiya-sama interjected.

'Yes. Discovering the girl's location was easy enough, everyone in the town knew each other and she was not easy to miss. A redhead in River Country is enough of a rarity that the rest of the townspeople pointed me in her direction after a liberal application of genjutsu. Then it was just a matter of tracking her down and applying standard procedure.' Standard procedure was in itself a misnomer. There were at least a dozen 'standard' procedures, and each member of ANBU, whether or not assigned to Torture and Interrogation, had their own personal spin on one of them.

'Genjutsu again?' Jiraiya-sama asked.

'Only as a last resort. I find that while genjutsu works well when only a specific detail is needed, but a wide-ranging brief like this is easier handled if the target's emotions are engaged in other ways. My traveling swordsman cover both provides reassurance and engages the targets' sympathies, so it works well either way.'

'The target has a name, you know. You could just call her-'

'Forgive me, Hokage-sama, but emotional detachment from the mission is one of the guiding principles of the Shinobi Code.' Interrupting the Hokage was never a good idea, but the less he thought of the girl as a person, the less he would be disturbed by what had actually happened.

Jiraiya raised his left eyebrow, and for a moment Shikamaru feared he'd breached the bounds of acceptable behaviour, but then he resumed his blank stare.

'Emotional detachment is nice for killing machines, Nara-san, but I do hope that's not what Konoha is in the practice of producing. Nonetheless, go on with the report.'

'I apologise if I overstepped, Hokage-sama. I approached the girl at a local bar and tried to engage with her about her family, but she appeared unwilling to talk about it. In the interests of not blowing my cover'_ not looking like a prick_, he translated, 'I gave up and planned to infiltrate her house instead.'

This was where it got tricky. It wasn't that he had _lied_ on the mission report, exactly. It was just that it was impossible to convey exactly how unnerving the entire experience was without applying some sort of complex genjutsu to the paper which would recreate the scene exactly, and then subtitle then entire experience with his own mental state of mind at the time. It was the kind of overblown tactic that Uchiha Sasuke might employ, especially if he had felt the same things that Shikamaru had, but was certainly not something he would ever consider reasonable.

'At around midnight I made my approach. The plan was to put her under the ANBU variant of the Yamanaka Mind Hypnosis technique, and obtain the information directly from the source that way. Unfortunately, it didn't go as planned.'

Jiraiya merely raised an inquisitive eyebrow before letting Shikamaru continue.

'Upon entering the house through an exterior window, which was not unduly guarded or locked, I immediately approached the bedroom. When I didn't find her there, I went back to the entrance of the house, and searched it entirely. I failed to locate her on both my initial and second sweep, and was about to start doubting whether she was even in the house when I found her standing behind me.'

'I apologise if I misunderstand, Nara-san, but are you trying to tell me that a completely untrained teenager living in the middle of nowhere was able to get the drop on a jounin-level ANBU _while_ that same ANBU was trying to find her?' Jiraiya-sama said incredulously.

'Erm. Yes, Hokage-sama, that is indeed what happened,' Shikamaru said. He would have described his current state as 'sheepish' if not for the simple fact that ANBU, almost by definition, were never in the least way embarrassed.

'So how come you're still standing here, then?' Jiraiya-sama asked. It was a fair question. If _he_ had found a strange man sneaking into his house, he would probably have killed the man on the spot, and never mind any regulations about killing while off-duty.

'Hokage-sama, I have no idea. She discerned I was ANBU immediately, even though I was wearing neither my uniform or my mask, and then proceeded to give me both exactly what the mission brief wanted my to obtain, as well as some personal history that I also included because I assumed it would be of some interest.'

'The girl gave you oral confirmation that she was not in possession of any information regarding Konoha, and neither was her father?' Jiraiya's tone came as close to disbelief as he could possibly let it. Why was this so ahrd to believe?

'Sir, yes. Her exact words were "My father cared about exactly three things: me, my mother, and the Legacy of the Whirlpool, which was me again. Unless you're here to assassinate me, which you could have done in the bar itself, I have nothing to offer to you"'

'So not only did she identify who you were, she also recognised you'd tried to pick her previously, and despite this you still took her at her word?'

'I have no idea how she connected me with the previous incident, but I assume it was by the same ability that allowed her to shadow me while I was trying to find her. On the issue of belief, I have been extensively trained by both Inoichi-sensei and Morino-sensei, and I am fairly confident that the target was not lying in her assertion that neither she nor her father knew or wanted to know anything that was vital to Konoha's interests.' _If the mission log had actually told me exactly what this 'information' was supposed to be, I could have asked her directly._

_'_I see. I suppose you're wondering why you weren't told exactly what you were supposed to be looking for?' Jiraiya said with a hint of amusement.

'I am not meant to question my orders, Hokage-sama.' he replied dispassionately.

'Boy, a little less tension would do wonders for you. You're a Nara, for heaven's sake. Acting like one won't kill you, and neither will saying her name.' Now he was deliberately trying to get a rise out of Shikamaru.

'When I put on my mask, I cease being anything other than ANBU of Konohagakure, and the personal weapon of the Shadow of Fire.' Now he was quoting Kakashi-sensei. Things were really going wrong.

'That's one of Hatake's, isn't it? He was sixteen when he said that, and I'm pretty sure he doesn't believe it anymore, and neither should you. Right, then. I've gotten everything I need out of you for the moment. I'm going to read through your report, but I need you to be available to clarify any details for the rest of the day. If you leave your whereabouts with whoever's outside I'm sure that'll do. Go on, get out of my office.' Suddenly ibiki-sensei giving him the rest of the day off made sense. Well, he'd done his best, there wasn't anything more he could do about it.

'Sir, yes, sir!' Shikamaru said. He saluted and turned to leave the room when he heard Jiraiya mutter under his breath.

'Kushina, your granddaughter is almost as confusing as you were. Uzumaki Aoki, Last of the Whirling Tides indeed.'

As Shikamaru left the tower and walked at a sedate pace to his favourite cloud-viewing spot, he turned the mystery of the insanely talented civilian girl around in his head, trying to find an explanation that fit. Some puzzles just caught his inquisitive brain, and some didn't. The sudden retirement of Sandaime-sama was one of them, his replacement with Jiraiya-sama, someone the Council _still _detested was another, and Uzumaki Aoki, granddaughter of one 'Kushina' was the latest. Usually it was his brain that thought about these things, but this time, his gut told him all three had to do with a common cause, and Shikamaru liked nothing more than to figure out puzzles that noone else could.

* * *

_A/N And that's the first chapter of something I've been thinking about for a while. Read and review, please, that'd be nice! On the other hand, I've read and not reviewed so many times I do feel very guilty about it, but I guess it wouldn't hurt to ask! I have a plan for this shit, but I dinna ken if it'll go well, or even if it's gone well so far. I think it has, but I am just very slightly biased. Only very slightly. It's certainly gone better than I thought it would, which is a blessing._


	2. Chapter 2

Akimichi Chouji was not the sharpest ninja in Konoha. That honour belonged to someone else, though _whom_ exactly he didn't know. He couldn't tell you what someone was thinking from just a twitch of their eyelids, and he couldn't make out someone's background from the way they wore their uniform. But he _could_ tell his best friend's emotions from the tiniest things about him. The way he lay down while he watched clouds might mean little to Hyuuga Neji, but it spoke volumes to someone who'd known him for his entire life.

Shikamaru only ever had two moods when he was cloud-watching. The first, which happened most of the time, was him de-stressing, contemplating the world and drifting off to sleep every now and again. It was easy to approach him while he was doing this, because he was never bothered if you woke him up. The second, which was altogether much rarer, was him seriously thinking about a problem and trying to understand it. As a kid he used to have a thinking pose he would go into while doing this, but he had now assimilated it into his cloud-watching routine. The dangerous thing about the second mood was that he looked, for all intents and purposes, asleep. It was only the imperceptible twitch of his eyebrows and the way his hands were behind his head that meant he was concentrating. And disturbing him while he was in the second mood could be _very_ dangerous indeed.

So when Chouji walked to Training Ground 31 and saw his friend on top of the hillock, he immediately quietened his footsteps and stowed his packet of crisps. Shikamaru wasn't supposed to be free today, and 31 was team 10's personal training ground, so he clearly did want some privacy. But Shikamaru and Chouji were in many ways the same person. While one was quiet and tall and thin and the other was boisterous and big-boned and of middling height, they both knew each other so well that sometimes privacy didn't come into it. Chouji often wondered what he'd done in a previous life to deserve Nara Shikamaru, and maybe one day he'd find out.

As he approached his friend, the seriousness in his eyes shocked Chouji. Shikamaru was never _this_ intense. The time he'd heard Shikaku-jii had been critically hurt on an A-rank last year, or when Team 10 had been ambushed by the Kumo Jinchuuriki were the only times Shikamaru had locked up in the way he had now. Well, there had also been the break-up, but Temari was a special case. What in the world had his friend so tense?

'Crisp?'

Shikamaru opened one eye that wasn't even looking at Chouji.

'Nah, I'm not hungry.'

'How long've you been here?'

'Couple hours.'

'Hard mission?'

'Not really.'

'Seen anyone else yet?'

'No. Just made my report to the Hokage and then came straight here.'

'How'd _that_ go?'

Shikamaru finally broke a grin. 'There is a guardian spirit somewhere looking out for me. No less than twenty sticks of incense will do for the kind of magic it worked on Jiraiya-sama.'

'Hehehe. You always were a lucky bastard.'

'I'll have you know my parents were married when Kaa-san got pregnant.'

'That's not how my father tells the story!'

So Chouji did what he knew best, banter with Shikamaru and let him destress, and he would tell Chouji whatever he needed to know in due time.

* * *

Aburame Shino was not an overly emotional ninja. He got angry like other people did, and he got annoyed and he got depressed, but he was Aburame and he would not let his emotions cloud his judgement. Some of his fellow ninja took that as a sign that he wasn't like them, and they were right. He was a good ninja, and a good ninja was logical. He didn't kill off his emotions or something stupid like that. He just made sure they didn't interfere with the task at hand, which was something not many Leaf ninja could do.

So it was not surprising when Information and Recon approached him and not anyone else when they wanted someone to check on a possible leak. Shino was good at what he did, and he would have been in and out in less than a week. Other ninja would have gotten emotional at the mere thought of a traitor, but Shino knew there would be no point in getting that involved. He would follow his orders and if he had any concerns, he would put them in the mission report.

It would have taken him almost no effort. But something in his gut told him not to accept it. _Be patient_, that feeling said. _There's something underneath the underneath_, that feeling said. And for the first time in his career, Shino went not with his head, but with his gut. He refused, citing tiredness and other nondescript reasons that essentially meant he didn't want to go, and I&R left it at that. Sometimes jounin didn't go on missions that they thought were too easy, and that was how the cookie crumbled.

But equally, Shino wanted to know what had happened on that mission. It had been somewhere in River Country, in a nowhere town which would be perfect for a traitor to go to ground. Shino wondered how they even found the source, given how obscure the location was. So he tried to find out who it was who got saddled with it, and what the report said. He turned up at the Filing Office a couple of weeks after he turned the mission down, and asked them about 'that C-rank in River about the traitor'. Usually, this was more than enough for the filers, who had a near obsessive memory for this kind of thing. But the woman just looked at him blankly, and said there wasn't any such mission. So Shino spoke to her superior, who also didn't know anything. Neither did _his_ superior, and neither did _his_. It was as if he had hallucinated the entire thing. The village thought Aburame were all disturbed in the head as things stood, and they didn't need more reasons to add to their idiotic prejudices.

So he left it at that, simply because it was more trouble than it was worth. He'd go directly to Yamanaka-san and ask what the hell had happened in a few weeks.

The day after he'd gone to the filers was Reunion Day for Team 8. Reunion Day was the day that Team 8 would go eat at Kurenai-sensei's favourite restaurant, reminisce about the coolest, funniest, most amazing Jounin-Sensei Konoha would ever have. Shino wasn't prone to boasting, but Team 8 was one of the best teams of three that Konoha had, and it was all because of Kurenai. Other teams in their year had their own traditions. Team 7 spent all of their time either on the bridge, or in front of the Memorial Stone. Team 10 constantly hung out on that hillock on Training Ground 31. But Team 8 didn't need places to go to feel at home. All they needed was some sushi, some sake, and Kiba telling yet another fart joke while Hinata tried her best not to burst out laughing and Shino tried _his_ best not to smack him.

Reunion Day meant wearing the pair of sunglasses Kurenai-sensei had bought him after he'd made chuunin, sharing just one drink with Asuma-sensei and Hiru-kun in honour of the woman they all loved and missed, and watching the sun go down from on top of the Sandaime's head with his team. But that same feeling that told him not to go on the mission was also telling him something else, that this Reunion Day would be different from the last. Despite his normally logical approach to life, Shino just couldn't shake the misgivings he had about the mission and about what the coming weeks would bring.

He was walking home from the Hokage mountain, having said goodbye and left Hinata and Kiba walking to the Hyuuga compound together. While they had always been completely platonic, there was no reason Shino couldn't push them together and hope for the best. The day had gone much as he had expected it to, and Shino was beginning to feel that his twinges of doubt had just been something he should have ignored. He continued, lost in his reverie, until he noticed a chakra signature approach him. It was unusual for someone not Aburame to come this close to the clan compound, and it was not someone he was familiar with, but Shino suppressed his misgivings and let whoever it was take their time. This was Konoha after all, no one was going to be attacked in the a village guarded both by killer ninja and military police. Whoever this was probably had a message for someone in the compound, either his father or his uncle, and would rather hand it over to a known Aburame than have to actually enter the compound.

The ninja appeared in front of him in a flurry of leaves. Shunshin was a waste of chakra, but it was convenient inside the village, especially for ANBU who didn't generally have to worry about chakra capacity.

'Shino-san. May I have a word?' said Shikamaru.

* * *

Shino invited Shikamaru into the compound for some tea, and was a little surprised when he accepted. They were sitting in Shino's own home now, discussing the same mission that had been on both of their minds.

'So you were landed with the mission after I turned it down?' Shino said.

'Yeah, I think they wanted someone skilled in stealth, and I was the next logical choice.' Shikamaru-san replied.

'I can't say I'm not interested in what happened.' Shino said noncommittally. It made no sense to reveal to his fellow ANBU exactly how intrigued he was by the mission.

'Well, it was certainly very challenging, despite its rank. The report has been classed above A-rank, so in actuality neither you nor I has any clearance to know about this.' Shikamaru said.

Shino raised an eyebrow.

'And yet here we both are, talking about it.'

'Well, we _were_ approached, and I think that gives us a reason. If you have any concerns...' he trailed off.

Shino grimaced internally. Technically, neither of them were allowed to talk about this. On the other hand, they _had_ been approached, so that did give them some reason. And while Shino was a stickler for the rules, no one could be in a team with Inuzuka Kiba for any length of time without learning that sometimes, rules were made to be broken. This case had made him behave differently, and Shino wanted, no, _needed_ to know why.

'No, not at all, Nara-san. I was just making sure both of us knew where things stood.'

Shikamaru grinned. Shino had a reputation for being un-Aburame when times called for it.

'Call me Shikamaru. At any rate, I've been trying to find out about the mission's specifics. I assume you read the report?' Shikamaru asked.

'No, but it was described to me briefly by Yamanaka-san. A Leaf-nin gone rogue in River country, with some very dangerous information?'

'Something like that. The mission was to find his daughter, a girl called Uzumaki Aoki, and seek confirmation that way, and find out if he had leaked it to her, as well.' Shikamaru said. 'But there are a few things that puzzle me. The father wasn't even officially a ninja, he only attended the academy until the age of ten and then dropped out, I assume he disappeared soon after. How he even got hold of this information without getting caught completely baffles me. I also don't understand why they didn't just-'

'-Send you after the father instead of the daughter?' Shino completed. 'I agree, that makes no sense whatsoever. Maybe I&R were getting desperate?'

'Maybe. But why now? If this ninja, whoever he is, has never leaked whatever he has, why worry about it so long after the fact? Konoha's never been stronger, there is very little one Academy student could do to damage us.'

'I agree. Leaving that aside for a moment, I had some concerns as well. Primarily, where the information even came from. I can't remember exactly where the town was...' Shino said.

'Shiwa. It's a small town, fishing and wood exports. Just a typical town in River Country, really.' Shikamaru said.

'Right. No one's ever heard of it, no one would ever go to it, no one's ever come from it. It's a dot on a map, if that. How did I&R find out that the daughter of a random civilian was living _there_ of all places?' Shino continued.

'I think the info came directly from the Hokage. He was certainly very interested in both my verbal and the written report, unusually so for a C-rank.' Shino suspected there was something more that Shikamaru was not telling him, and if they were to make any progress, they couldn't have any hidden agenda sabotaging whatever it was that was happening between them.

'Shikamaru-san, if we are to do this, you must tell me everything. I cannot function on insufficient data, especially on something like this that is already quite sketchy.'

Shikamaru studied Shino for a while, as if trying to find something in his face that would make his decision for him. He sighed.

'Very well, Shino-san. Let's cut to the chase. I have been interested in several issues pertaining to the village for a good long while, since Sandaime-sama retired, really. The coming of Jiraiya-sama, the changes in the functioning of the village, the different interpretations of what I would call the philosophy of Konoha, the return of Senju-hime, they all happened in a very short time. Most people seem to have forgotten that most of this was set into motion _before_ Orochimaru's attack during our chuunin exams. The general village consensus is that Jiraiya-sama was so enraged by the final betrayal of his once-best-friend that he came back with a vengeance. But Sarutobi-sama was making noises about retiring while we were still at the Academy. Senju-hime arrived in Konoha just before our first exam took place. I have puzzled over this for a long time, and the only conclusion I can come up with is that something _did_ happen before the chuunin exams that made Jiraiya-sama come back. It wasn't Orochimaru, though I imagine that couldn't have helped. But I've never really researched it. I never had the clearance I needed for some files, and once I got into ANBU it ate up a _lot_ of my time.'

Shino nodded in sympathy as he listened.

'But this mission brings up some of those concerns again. Concerns that there are things in Konoha's past that some people, maybe even Godaime-sama, are trying to be _very_ subtle about. I suspect that whoever Uzumaki Aoki really is, she is part of a secret that has had dire ramifications for our village.'

Shino was stunned, but he hid it well. If Shikamaru hadn't put it so well, he would have suspected him of being insane, or trying to pull a very unbelievable prank. But everything he knew about the Nara told him that they were an intensely analytical clan, not prone to making overblown judgements or underhanded political ploys. No, Shikamaru truly believed everything he'd said.

'What do you want _me _for, Shikamaru-san? Surely any research you need can be done on your own?' Shino knew that now that his fellow conspirator had spilled the true reason for his concern, both of them were in it together. But Shino would not commit to anything unless he knew everything he wanted to know.

'You know as well as I do that one ANBU simply does not have the time to put into something like this. Two heads are always better than one. But there's also something else. If I'm to get the information I really need, I need someone with contacts in R&A. I _know_ you have those contacts, Shino-san.'

R&A was the last wing of ANBU. Retrieval and Assassination employed the best of the best. Silent, stealthy, deadly. And it was true that Shino knew people in R&A. No one could serve in it for more than two years, Jiraiya-sama declared it too stressful for any ninja. But any ninja who was once in R&A would always be in R&A. And as much as he deplored the use of underhanded tactics like Shikamaru's, he also respected the way he'd constructed his offer. Pretending to only want to talk about a C-rank, and then building it up into a village-wide mystery was exactly the bait Shino would have gone for, and now he was caught hook, line, and sinker.

'Very well, Shikamaru.' Shikamaru noticed he'd dropped the honorific. 'If you want to figure out this conspiracy theory of yours, you have my help. But if we're to do this, we're doing it my way. We're going to be methodical, neat, and go through every possibility with a fine-toothed comb. No lead is too vague, no suspect is too far-out, no theory is too hare-brained. And we must keep this deadly quiet. Anyone you or I inform of this is a potential leak. This includes Chouji-san and Kiba. We can only afford to tell people when we are sure that we have enough evidence to convince them of its importance, and that they will not breathe a word of it to anyone else. We have to be as subtle as whoever has hidden this from the village at large, if not subtler. If you can agree to this, then you have me and anything I can help you with.' Shino said.

Shikamaru's grin turned positively mischievous at that. His eyes gleamed with an inner fire, one that Shino had never seen in them before but one that Chouji, had he been there, would have recognised as meaning that his best friend was on the prowl.

'I think you and I will get along very well, Shino-san. It's getting late, so I will take your leave, but I will meet you tomorrow in the T&I wing around, say, noon? I am due some time off anyway, and I intend to take full advantage of it. Tomorrow brings a new day, yes?' he said. He thanked his host for the tea and walked out of the door, but not without adding one final comment.

'And Shino, thank you for believing me.'

* * *

_that also went quite well, din't it? i liked the dynamic between shikamaru and shino, one professional to another, one genius to another, one clan heir to another. i hope i'm making the mystery interesting, and as always, reviews are appreciated._

_to my one reviewer for the last chapter, soprano-in-waiting : like shikamaru said, two heads are better than one. both him and shino together trying to unravel this very knotty mystery will, i hope, prove more interesting than just our favourite shadow-weaver. i also want to try and tell the story of what's changed in konoha in my AU. it's pretty obvious who the 'father' is to you and me, but shino and shikamaru have no idea. cool, no?_


	3. Chapter 3

There were many discrepancies in the history of Konohagakure no Sato. It was only to be expected; after all, it _was_ a village full of mercenary ninja who killed for pay. It was also the home of the most powerful shinobi on the continent, its techniques feared far and wide. The Byakugan and the Sharingan were only two of its weapons. From the kikaichu-wielders of the Aburame to the mindwalkers of the Yamanaka, they all contributed in one way or another to the sheer power that was the military of the Hidden Leaf, and they all had their secrets.

Shikamaru himself was a testament to this. The Nara were not one of the premier clans of Konoha for nothing. Their shadow-binding techniques had been guarded jealously for generations, and while every new generation was that much closer and more loyal to its village there were still some clan secrets no one outside the clan knew.

So he knew that searching the records of the village for clues about the Godaime's appointment would be a long shot. There was simply no way that he would find something concrete in the first few weeks. But even as he combed through the paperwork, Shikamaru grew more and more frustrated that there was no hint, no shred of evidence that led anywhere.

Shino was working the Uzumaki angle. It was the only thing that had both of their hackles raised. A good shinobi's instincts rarely pointed them in the wrong direction, and they were not just good shinobi, they were jounin of the Leaf. Aoki was a lead neither of them were willing to let the other have, but in the end, Shino's R&A contacts won out. And so Shikamaru was stuck looking at old paperwork.

Between him and Shino, they knew people almost everywhere in Konoha. ANBU was an open book to them, insofar as ANBU was an open book to anyone. Shikamaru's father knew people on the Civilian Council, the military police liked nothing more than to help ANBU, and the filers loved him, though he had no idea why. Shino's reputation for being fair and honest had opened several avenues with the financiers of Konoha, and he had a cousin working in the hospital. The only place they had no power whatsoever was the Hokage's office, or as Shikamaru was thinking of it more and more often, the Tower. The Tower of the Godaime Hokage, which Shikamaru was _sure _held all the answers.

But right now there was no need to think about all of that. Right now, he was having dinner at Asuma-sensei's favourite restaurant, listening to Ino-chan tell him yet again about how he needed to move on from Temari and get himself a nice girl. How Sakura had got a new haircut, and that Sasuke-kun had beaten Neji in their latest spar, and other equally troublesome, mundane things. It was a relief, in one way, to be away from the reports of ninja killing and spying and seducing.

'-maru? NARA SHIKAMARU, are you even _listening_ to me?' Ino yelled at him.

'Yes, yes, of course I am. You were just saying how Sasuke-_kun _had beaten Neji, and clearly he is superior, and all the rest of it.' Shikamaru replied.

Ino grumbled about lazy Nara men, but let it go. And before Shikamaru knew it, he was being interrogated not by Ino, his teammate and best friend, but by Yamanaka Ino, protege of both her father and Ibiki-sensei, T&I specialist.

'So what's this I hear about you and Shino-san?' she asked.

Shikamaru rearranged his face into what he hoped was a suitably bemused expression.

'Me and Shino-san? Last I heard, we weren't in a relationship. In fact, I'm pretty sure he's straight, and and I'm even surer I'm straight too.'

Ino looked at him, and Shikamaru knew it hadn't worked. 'You really expect me to believe that? Come on, do you think the rest of us are blind and deaf? Even Kiba-san's noticed it.'

'Noticed what, exactly?' Shikamaru said, hoping to play dumb just a little while longer, trying desperately to think of a good lie should he need one.

'Nothing, Nothing at all. Merely that you're suddenly spending much of your free time together, that you've taken your sick leave when you've never taken any before, that he's chatting up people at R&A, that the filers are gossiping about how much time you spend cooped up on the fifth floor. No, nothing at all, Shika-kun. Everything's perfectly normal, isn't it?' Ino had a sarcastic tongue when she wanted to use it.

'Look, Ino, I don't know what you think-'

'No, clearly you don't! It's one thing to keep secrets from Chouji and me. Ok, fine, you don't want to tell us. But then to share it with Aburame _Shino_? I mean, do we really mean that little to you, that you'd go to a _bug-user _for help before you come to us? We're your friends, aren't we? We've only been through dozens of near-death situations, laughed together and cried together, right? What the _fuck_, Shikamaru?'

Shit. Clearly he'd overestimated his and Shino's abilities to keep things quiet, and underestimated Ino's depth of feeling. Now he knew why Chouji wasn't here. His best friend hated confrontation, and this would very hard on him. But it also made it just that much easier, because now he only had to lie to the clan-heir of the Yamanaka, and not to Chouji as well. Ino-chan was good at spotting lies, but Chouji was terrific at spotting _his_ lies.

'Ok, Ino-chan-' he started again, before he was cut off again.

'Don't you "Ok, Ino-chan" me!'

'Very well, Yamanaka-dono. I apologise for my transgressions, and would like an opportunity to explain myself.' He slipped into formal tones, hoping that it would at least soften Ino up a little while he thought about what he was going to say.

She continued to glare at him. Shit. It was then that a vague memory of Asuma-sensei teaching them about how to avoid interrogation.

_'If all else fails, go for the eyes'_. He meant that in the last resort, be outrageous, and hope for the best.

'Shino-san and I both met about a month ago, regarding an issue that concerned both of us acutely. Since then, we have been working towards a resolution of this matter, which has required both regular meetings and frequent correspondence between us, as well as much research. As a result, we may have been neglecting our duties to our fellow comrades.' So far, so good.

'This is what you're giving me? 'Issue which concerns us'? 'Regular meetings and frequent correspondence'? Just tell me, or don't. Don't give me this bullshit.' Ino snapped.

Shikamaru mentally flinched. It was all or nothing, then.

'You really want to know? Fine! Both Shino-san and I have been concerned that Hokage-sama hasn't picked a replacement yet. He's getting old, and the sooner he picks and trains a successor, the better. So we've been trying to talk to people, and do some research, to find out what we can-'

Ino's eyes went wide. 'You're going for Hokage? YOU'RE GOING FOR HOKAGE, AND YOU DIDN'T TELL US?'

Shikamaru was seriously unsure whether this was a good thing or not, but he could run with it if he needed to.

'Ino! Don't screech, it hurts my ears. And there are other people here too, you know.' he admonished.

'Shikamaru, this is the last time I'm going to ask. Are you going for Hokage?'

'Shino-san and I both agreed that we thought a successor should be chosen. If either of us was it, then the other wouldn't come in the way, and might even be picked for Chief Advisor. Until then, we should probably pool our resources, see who came up with what, and whether either of us had any support. And before you ask, no, of course I didn't tell either of you. I only told Shino-san because I had to. We both agreed that we'd tell no one until we were ready to formally declare it. The less people know about a secret, the less likely it is to spill. So don't take it personally. You think I didn't want to tell you?' Shikamaru said. The best lies always had a healthy amount of truth in them.

Ino sat opposite him, playing with her rice but not actually eating any of it as she considered his words. Shikamaru took this time to mentally heave a sigh of relief. It had gotten Ino off their scent, and would probably work for anyone else who was suspicious too. Shikamaru might have regretted it if he hadn't been sure that Shino was going to be in the same situation soon, if he was not now. They had to meet soon and get their stories straight.

'So. You're going for Hokage, with Aburame Shino. And you didn't think it was a good idea to tell us because, and I quote 'the less likely the secret is to spill'. Right.'

'Yeah. And it's nowhere near official. We haven't talked to any of the clan heads, not even our fathers. The jounin know nothing, the Hokage knows even less. At this point, it's just two ninja of Konoha, talking about our village's future. Happens all the time.' he said, trying his best to downplay the entire thing.

'Ok, so you're going to need a strategy. I know we can't bring in anyone else, but we can at least formulate some sort of game plan. Hmm, your most likely contenders would be Sasuke-kun and Kakashi-sensei, but the prejudiced bastards'll never give it to the 'Cursed Uchiha', and Kakashi-sensei's never wanted it, as far as I can tell. So you have the upper hand, but the minute you announce there'll be a flurry of others. Sakura-chan, maybe, and Lee-san, even. Some of the ANBU, you think?'

The rest of the night continued in that vein, with Ino putting her not inconsiderable mental faculties to use in various political campaigns, trying to see which would work best. Shikamaru knew that finding Shino was now more important than anything, so as he dropped Ino off at her apartment, he immediately Shunshin'd to Shino's flat, where he was greeted with a stony look and a tight grimace which said 'We're fucked.'

* * *

'I don't suppose your evening was any better than mine?' Shikamaru said.

'Probably not. Hinata-chan and Kiba-kun both attacked me, in different ways though their result was the same. We were at Kiba's sister's house, and Hinata completely ignored me in favour of Hana. Kiba, on the other hand, was completely normal until the meal got over, at which point he started to shout at me about secrets and teammates. And you, of course.' he replied.

'Sounds remarkably similar to Ino's speech, to be honest.'

'Yes, I imagine it was planned that way. In any case, Hinata left as soon as Kiba was done, and Kiba went with her, so I wasn't given any time to defend myself, and they made it clear they didn't want to see me until tomorrow, at the earliest. How did yours go?' he asked.

'Much the same, except Chouji wasn't there. Ino was enough for two people, though. I did, however, get a chance to say something on my behalf.'

Shino stayed silent, waiting for him to continue.

'We're running for Hokage.'

* * *

As Shikamaru described his conversation with Ino to Shino, he noticed how Shino didn't even flinch when it came to her descriptions of him. The same girl who cursed the Council for being prejudiced about Uchiha also spoke of the Aburame in a biting tone that was not usually her style, and Shino looked upon it as almost normal. Shikamaru filed it away for another day, returning to more pressing matters.

'This is genius, it really is. It's mad, but it's genius. It gives us complete immunity to look at whatever we like, we're running for Hokage, after all. Anything for the village, the Will of Fire, the Legacy of the Senju. We could almost get away with it.' Shino said, half incredulous and half amazed.

'I think I've gotten away with it already. She spent the rest of dinner talking about when the best time to announce would be, and whether we should talk to Jiraiya-sama. It was mindboggling.'

'No, it makes perfect sense, and it's a terrific reason not to tell anyone. How long do you think before it comes out?'

'On its own? Ino's reliable when it comes to really important things, but there might have been someone at the restaurant. If you tell Kiba and Hinata, and I tell Chouji tomorrow, and it's not out by then, I think we're ok. It could still leak in any of a dozen ways, but if it comes out, it will. It's not like it hurts the original mission.'

'No. Still, can you imagine accidentally running for Hokage?' Shino said. Shikamaru was almost surprised, it was the first time he'd heard the usually taciturn man say anything that resembled a joke.

He shuddered. 'Let's not go there. At any rate, have you found any new leads?'

Shino smiled. Without his coat, he seemed much more approachable, his face was nowhere near as drawn and guarded, though he still wore his sunglasses.

'I know who Kushina is.'

* * *

'I was on my last legs at R&A. I think no one wanted to talk, least of all to me, about Uzushio beyond what you found in the textbooks, and almost no one seemed willing to say anything about the Uzumaki. However, today I found a reference in an old retrieval mission to one 'Uzumaki Kushina'. Turns out when the village was destroyed, by the Kyuubi, did you say?' Shino asked.

Shikamaru nodded, that was what the girl had said.

'Yes, so in the aftermath of the destruction, the clans of Uzushio scattered to the winds, so to speak. I imagine most of them went to Kiri, being the closest to Uzu, but apparently Konoha was a close ally of the Whirlpool, despite being so far away. So they sent a few of their ninja to the Leaf as well, which was probably a good idea.' The Civil Wars of the Mist were dangerous, and had happened soon after the Third Great War. There was no way the leaders of Uzu could have known about it then, but most ninja in Kiri from major bloodline clans were later wiped out. Kiri was not a good place to be in those times.

'They sent ANBU to retrieve any survivors heading our way. Only one of them survived.'

'Uzumaki Kushina?' Shikamaru asked, his heart racing.

'Exactly. Uzumaki Kushina. I suspect the only reason the record wasn't lost when they reorganised ANBU was that whoever Kushina was, she was very important to Konoha's leadership. The scroll had several high level seals on it, and I only managed to unlock it because it was a very old scroll, and was probably forgotten about after her importance faded. With both a first name and a last name, things went much faster. I found records of a few missions she went on, some important dates, things like that.'

'So what did you find?' Shikamaru asked impatiently.

'Kushina joined the Academy before the Third War. She made genin at 12, chuunin at 13, and jounin at 15, though that might be because of field promotions. The scroll reported her as married, but she kept her own name, and the husband's name was blacked out. She died during the attack of the Kyuubi, and her scroll was sealed and put into storage until I stumbled onto it today.' Shino said.

'So whoever Kushina is, she's related to Uzumaki Aoki by blood, right? But her death is way too early to affect anything that happened with the Godaime.' Shikamaru replied.

'I think the missing link will prove critical. Kushina's son must be Aoki's father. Do you think we can look through the Academy's records, to see if we find something?'

'Where do we start looking, then? There doesn't seem to be anything left in ANBU, but I'm not sure we have anywhere else unless we start asking people straight out.'

They sat in silence for a few minutes, mulling over the new information and its lack of clarity.

'Have you tried the Academy files yet?' Shino asked.

Shikamaru looked at Shino in confusion before he caught on.

'The son was only ten when he left, yeah. He should be in the Academy files, which might not have been purged', he said. 'I don't know if we can do that without seeming like paedophiles, but we can try'.

The skin around Shino's hidden eyes crinkled in amusement.

'What time frame are we looking at, here?' he said.

'Let's just check all the records within five years of the Godaime's succession. I'll go through the rest of the mission logs that the filers have, to see if Uzumaki or Kushina pops up anywhere. But we need to move faster now, if it gets out that we're planning to run for Hokage-'

'-then everything stops. I agree. We might have ask Academy teachers, see if they remember whoever the son was.'

'Ideally, we should ask Tsunade-hime about the Hokage. If there's anything that we want to know, she'll know it.'

'But getting her to tell us will be impossible. More tea?' Shino asked.

Shikamaru nodded. 'Hmm. This might prove more troublesome that the previous problem.'

They had descended into silence for a good fifteen minutes when Shikamaru stood up.

'Right, then, I'll make a start on those Academy files sometime next week. I need a break from all this first.' he huffed.

'I can imagine. I'll have to meet my team and tell them the news, and you might want to lay low for a while. Just in case something happens.'

'Yeah, OK. I don't suppose there's any chance of a trade?' Shikamaru asked hopefully.

'What, Uzumaki Aoki in return for looking through old test scores? Not a kikaichu's chance against one of Hokage-sama's toads.' Shino said.

'Oh well. It was worth the try' Shikamaru muttered to himself, and left the apartment in a flurry of leaves.

* * *

_so, new chapter! sorry if you're waiting, but i really suspect you're not. i dunno if this is believable, but having a killer-ninja with a body full of insects talk to another ninja who can control shadows is stretching disbelief anyway, so i guess one or the other pretending to run for Hokage isn't _too_ far out. next chapter will be out whenever._


	4. Chapter 4

Two days. That's how long it had taken the Aburame clan to react to Shikamaru's ridiculous story. Just two days. Shino was torn between pride for his family's intelligence abilities, and fright at being the target of them. Telling Hinata and Kiba was simple enough, they looked at him for three seconds like he had grown a second head and then moved on. Of course, they were both a little sore about not being told, more so than Shikamaru's friends had been. Team 8 might not have had the history of Ino-Shika-Cho, but they had just as much trust between them, and Shino was feeling the effects of having broken that trust. He did not want to contemplate what would happen when he told them that he'd lied to them after ignoring them. No, those thoughts would be banished for another day.

He had been tending to his hive, and listening for any problems, 'troubleshooting', his father liked to call it, when his grandfather found him. Aburame Shinichi was deadly in combat, and deadly in conversation, and it was generally a good idea to be careful of his wrath. However, when Shino saw him first approaching, he smiled at the chance to speak with him. Of course, he had no idea what was about to befall him.

'Greetings, Honoured Grandfather', he said respectfully.

Shinichi merely gave him a stern gaze.

'I hope your hive has not been giving you any trouble? The unseasonable winter is having an effect on my own kikaichu, I'm afraid', he tried again.

'Grandson, I shall be frank with you', he began gravely. 'Is there something completely wrong with your mind? Have your allies finally given up on you and turned your brain into mush for their children?' his grandfather said in a chilling tone.

'I'm afraid I... do not follow, grandfather' he said, all the while wondering exactly what he had done wrong.

'I am speaking of your bid to attain the post of Hokage, Shino-chan. What else would I be speaking about?' his grandfather continued. Even after all these years, he could not drop the childish honorific he had given the clan heir when had seen him first, barely a day old and already burdened with the expectations of an entire clan.

'I may have been considering such a thing, grandfather. However, I certainly have no idea-'

'-please, Shino-chan. Do not insult the clan's capabilities. Simply because the Yamanaka are not capable of finding out what their own daughter is doing does not mean our own eyes and ears are of no use', his grandfather admonished.

'May I explain myself?', Shino snapped. He had not expected a full-frontal assault from his own grandfather, not about something that, while he could not actually admit to the fact, was not even true.

Shinichi let out a breath. 'I'm afraid I let my irritation get the better of me, grandson. I am sorry.' Shino's eyes went wide. His grandfather actually _apologised_?

'I merely want to ensure you know exactly what you are getting into. This is not a small thing, eh?' he said with a wistful smile.

'I-, that is, yes. Yes of course.' Shino managed, with a stutter.

'You know and I know the Village Hidden in the Leaves, Clan Heir.' he began. Shinichi was speaking slowly, enunciating every word, making sure Shino understood everything, just as he had done years earlier when telling him bedtime stories about Konoha. 'Our ancestors came here a very long time ago, at the request of the Senju, partly because of the respect we had for him, but also because it was, in fact, the most logical choice at the time. The other Villages, both Great and small, were being set up in locations far less suited to our purposes. Kumo, Suna, Ame, none of them had conditions that were perfect for our kikaichu. The choice was obvious, even though Fire Country was probably more dangerous than Water, or Wind. Imagine, grandson, an entire forest created in the blink of an eye, by the wielder of the Mokuton, and his brother's prowess with Suiton.' He paused as he took a breath, gathering his thoughts.

'So we came to Konoha, eager to find new opportunities, new allies, new ways to protect our own and discover others like us. But we were in for a shock, weren't we? Because our ancestors were not accepted with the same joy by their comrades as, say, Inuzuka. Bonding with dogs was in some ways more understandable than bonding with our friends. But it was not a great revulsion, only a little one, so our ancestors settled here and protected for the Leaf, and died of the Leaf, and lived for the Leaf, just like every other ninja here. But we know this Village, Shino-chan. It is not conducive to that which it decides does not belong, and its fear of us has had a long time to grow and spread.'

'Pardon me for asking, Grandfather, but what is the relevance of your tale to my situation?' Shino asked.

Shinichi's eyes, had they been visible, would have twinkled with amusement.

'I was just coming to that, Shino-chan. As a potential candidate for Hokage, you should be aware of all the costs. This, in some ways, is the most important of them.' He took of his sunglasses, and wiped them with the hem of his shirt.

'If you are truly aspiring to be this village's leader, you must know its prejudices. And we know how prejudiced it is towards us, do we not? It is almost unconscious, just below the surface, and in most cases does not make any real difference. But with something like Hokage, it will be magnified a hundredfold. But you must do this, Shino-chan. If there is one surefire way of changing their perception of us, it is by leading them and showing them that in reality, we are not so different from them after all.'

'I only wanted to make sure you knew, grandson. It is not an easy thing, to be Hokage, and it will be even harder for you. It will be harder for you to get there, and harder for you to stay there. But this village is the strongest of the five Great Villages for a reason. It is the strength of its ninja, and the dedication of its Hokage. Do not make this choice lightly, and be wary of falling down the throat of an unseen toad.' Shinichi stood up with a grunt, and ended his lecture with one last comment.

'I will not blame you if you choose not to run, Shino. After all, it is the same choice I made when I was your age.'

Shino watched his grandfather walk away from him, his soft footsteps echoing in the clan compound until he jumped on a nearby roof and began the trip back to his own apartment. He had given him many things to think about, not least of which was that him running for Hokage might not be so fake after all.

* * *

Shikamaru, on the other hand, was having far more luck with his end of the stick. His father hadn't said anything about Hokage to him, and Ino and Chouji were satisfied with the whole story. It had taken him three hours of practice to make sure there was nothing Chouji could catch, but it was well worth it. Currently he was walking towards the Tower, contemplating how to get access to the Academy's files without appearing too suspicious. Of course, there was always the hope that no one would care. Past files of students were only kept because of Konoha's affinity for paperwork, there was no real reason for them to be kept otherwise. But he still needed permission, and one could never be _too_ careful when dealing with the Hokage's Office.

There was, however, something that was bothering him, something that had been on his mind since he had started this entire investigation. In the context of everything else they had found, Uzumaki Aoki's age simply didn't make sense. If she was sixteen, then that would put the date of her birth well before the Godaime's accession. But her father was supposed to have left Konoha pre-genin, so unless he had become a father before puberty, there was no way she was his actual daughter. Shikamaru frowned, counting off the years in his head. Assuming the traitor had had a child at sixteen, the earliest he was willing to assume, that still put him six years after the Godaime. It had only been fifteen years since then. For a second he couldn't believe it had actually been fifteen years since he himself had been a wide-eyed genin, being trained by Asuma-sensei and doing crap missions like weeding and shopping. But the fact remained that Aoki was too old to be the traitor's daughter. There was something going on there, something that he had yet to figure out, and would probably, given their luck so far, never come to light.

As he approached the tower, he noticed the remaining members of Team Seven murmuring to each other, Sakura's hands animatedly making her point while Sasuke's eyes softened just a tiny smidgen. There was a reason Hatake Kakashi didn't speak to the Uchiha heir anymore, and it probably had something to do with his curse, and it was best to stay on his good side. But there was no way to get into the Tower now without attracting their attention, and Shikamaru really didn't walk to risk it. So he figured the best thing to do would be to slink in and hope they didn't notice him. Sure. That would happen. The Cursed Uchiha not noticing him would actually make a terrific testament to either his stealth abilities or his complete irrelevance. He figured the former was slightly less likely than the latter. He briefly contemplated using a Shadow Teleportaton or a Shunshin before dismissing both as too troublesome, and probably illegal this close to the Hokage.

Into the breach it was, then.

'Shikamaru-kun! Over here!' Sakura said loudly. She seemed to have all of Ino-chan's irritating qualities with none of the things that made Ino such a good friend and teammate. No wonder Team 7 turned out as it did.

'Good morning, Sakura-san, Uchiha-san. I'm sorry, I didn't see you there, it's all this work I'm doing' Shikamaru said. While it wasn't a lie, it certainly implied that he was doing official work, and that wasn't the truth, either. Sasuke tilted his head a tiny fraction at Shikamaru's greeting before resuming his impression of a face carved from marble. His eyes were cold as ever, and huge contrast to his friend's animated green ones.

'I know what you mean. Tsunade-shishou runs me ragged at every chance she gets. But, aren't you on holiday? I'm sure Ino mentioned something.' Sakura said.

Shikamaru raised his defences ever so slightly. Sure, Sakura could have come by that information in a perfectly harmless way. But on the off-chance she hadn't, he would have to come up with another story.

'Oh yes, this is a personal project of mine. That's why I'm going in to see the Hokage just now, actually.' Shikamaru said, hoping she'd take the hint.

'Oh, of course, don't let us keep you. I just thought I'd say hi, and see how things are going', Sakura replied.

'Indeed. I'm sure we'll run into each other again,' he said.

Just as he was about to make his exit, Sasuke caught his eye.

'Nara-san, this project you're working on, it wouldn't happen to have anything to do with a conversation you had a few days ago, would it? One about your prospects for the future?' he said softly. Sakura's eyes hardened just a little bit, ready to defend her teammate in case Shikamaru exploded.

He merely sighed.

'Ok, look, I don't know what you think you heard, or how you heard it, but whatever it is, put it out of your mind. I've got better things to do than talk to eavesdroppers and rumourmongers.' Shikamaru said in a cold tone.

'We were just enjoying dinner when we saw our comrades in the same restaurant, Shikamaru-kun. We'd have come over, but you were so involved in each other I don't think you would have noticed', Sakura interjected.

'All we want to do is talk to you privately, whenever you have the time. Come over to the compound, I'm sure you know where it is' Sasuke continued.

Shikamaru gritted his teeth. 'Whatever. I have stuff to do, and your political manoeuvrings don't interest me one bit.'

Sakura grunted something that sounded suspiciously like '_men_', before saying 'Look, Shika. We're not looking for anything, we're just asking for half an hour of your time. Listen to us, and then you can leave or whatever. IS that too much to ask?'

'Fine, half an hour, I'll see you sometime this week. Now get out of my way.' he said, as he pushed past them to get through the door. 'And if I don't turn up, well, you can do what you like', he muttered, fully aware that they could still hear him.

* * *

He spent two hours arguing with the administrators in the Tower about whether he had the right to look at the files, but in the end his ANBU status won out. Clearly the normal filers and the ones in the Tower were two different breeds, because the former loved him while the latter seemed to seethe about the fact that they had had to defer to him.

He then had to trek back to the Academy and root through several cabinets' worth of paperwork before he found what he was looking for. Attendance records and teacher comments for students in the last ten years of the Sandaime's reign. Just for old time's sake he pulled the very last one of the bunch, the one that he himself had graduated from, and started reading. It seemed whoever had made the report ahd come back and found the file, to update them with pertinent information about whether the student had passed or failed, and what they were doing now.

_Aburame Shino_

_Grade: A in Theory, A in Practical. Passed Pre-Genin and Genin exams. Passed Chunin. Passed Jounin. ANBU, codename unknown._

_Remains quiet and rarely engages in class, just like the rest of his clan. Surely this isolation must be hurting him socially, but Shibi-san refuses to hear anything about it, so I can't interfere. But I guess this year is worse than most others, and the reputation his clan has probably doesn't do much for him._

Who had written this? Umino Iruka, it said on the bottom. He vaguely remembered the man, a smiling teacher with a large scar across his nose who always took care of his students even when he caught them skiving. Shikamaru smiled at the memories before moving on.

He saw a few other names he recognised, like Inuzuka Kiba and Hyuuga Hinata, but he was really interested in what the man had to say about Shikamaru.

_Nara Shikamaru_

_Grade: C in Theory, D in Practical. Passed Pre-Genin and Genin exams. Passed Chuunin. Passed Jounin. ANBU, codename Deer._

_The boy doesn't seem to engage in class at all, and just spends most of his time asleep. If it weren't for the fact that he's the heir of a notoriously lazy clan, he wouldn't get away with this at all. This kind of favouritism can't be good for anyone, surely. Still, I don't make the rules._

Shikamaru's eyebrows shot up. He didn't realise exactly how exasperating his behaviour had been to his teacher, he probably would have changed it if he'd known. Well. Maybe. Still, there _was_ a blatant favouritism in his class, and in the village in general.

He started looking from the bottom of the pile, knowing that Uzumaki, if he did indeed exist, would be found there. Shikamaru couldn't remember anyone called that, but it had been a very long time ago and he couldn't remember most people from his year, especially given that most of them had dropped out after failing their exams.

Yuriko, Yamanaka, Uzumaki! He actually managed it! It made perfect sense, too. If the traitor had left just before graduation, then that would tie in perfectly with Jiraiya-sama's return to the village. Shino was going to regret the day he chose Aoki over school files. Not to mention he had managed some pretty useful blackmail material against everyone in his year. Just one copy of all of these files and he could trade ANBU duty whenever he liked. Genius!

Excited, he pulled the specific pages with a little more force than he needed to, tearing them slightly but not doing any meaningful damage. He read the words greedily, noting that while everyone else had only gotten a line or two, Uzumaki had managed an entire paragraph.

_Uzumaki Naruto_

_E in Theory, E in Practical. Status Unknown._

_Naruto is easily the smartest and the most creative of all of my pupils, if he only ever bothered to apply himself. It's understandable, I guess, and I was the same when I was his age, but there's really no reason for him to act out so badly and so often. Still, he's better than when I first met him, though when I first met him I had my prejudices too._

_Naruto continues to surprise me. He came up with the most inventive application for the solid Henge, though I have a very bad feeling about where it will lead. He's also gotten a lot quieter in the last few weeks, he's pulled no pranks whatsoever, and I haven't heard the words Hokage, ramen, or dattebayo even once. I'm starting to miss them, now. I guess it's worth having a Naruto who's concentrating, I guess._

_I've talked to Hokage-sama about Naruto, and he agrees that his status might have something to do with his recent changes. He's got an ANBU guard, of course, but he's always been able to hide from then and outrun them when he needs to. It's scary what a determined twelve-year-old can do, and it's terrifying what this determined twelve-year-old seems capable of doing._

_I can't believe what just happened. They came and found me while I was having dinner, and said something about the Fox having finally betrayed us. I didn't understand what he was saying at first, but when I did it frightened me more than anything. Naruto just up and left, and he didn't take anything. That orange jacket he loves so much is just there in his closet, and so is that ridiculous hat Hokage-sama gave him for his eighth birthday. I've never seen his apartment so clean. T&I said it looked like it had been planned for a while. Naruto, what have you done?_

_It's been a while since I've last looked at this. Years, really. I've kept up with my other genin, ticked them off and written down what they're doing, but somehow I always managed to avoid looking at Naruto's file. When I see what the village has become, I can't help but feel that it would have been better if he had been here to see it. I can't help but feel that if I'd just reached out to him a bit more, he wouldn't have had go through all of that, wouldn't have left Konoha. But I can't do this anymore. I can't keep thinking about the past, about how it might have been. It's time I said goodbye, Naruto-kun._

Shikamaru's eyes hardened. Whoever Naruto was, clearly he had had no conception of how much Iruka-sensei had cared for him, and the fact that he had made that kind teacher feel _guilty_ because he turned traitor was somehow too much to bear. Before, this was just a puzzle to solve, but now it had just taken on a whole new level. Now it was personal. He would make sure Naruto realised exactly what he'd done when he'd betrayed his village, and make sure his daughter knew what sort of a man her father really was. He swore it, on his clan's honour and his Konoha headband and his ANBU mask, that Naruto would pay.

* * *

_ehhhh, i dunno about that one. still, better than nothing, and shit continues to hit the fan. next time, i'll tell you a little bit more about the differences between this and canon, move away from just Shikamaru and Shino, because let's be honest, there are other people in this story too, and hopefully Team 7 will seem slightly nicer when you hear their side of the story._


	5. Chapter 5

When Shikamaru was late for their meeting, Shino didn't take too much notice of it. After all, it wasn't as if he was going anywhere anytime soon, and Shikamaru, being Shikamaru, tended to be late to most things anyway. What really got Shino's attention was that when Shikamaru _did_ arrive, he was noticeably frustrated, his hands tightening around the files he held, his jaws clenched. Shino reacted to this with his customary nonchalance, and hoped that his friend would calm down enough to actually tell him what happened. Sometimes it really would be simpler for everyone if Akimichi Chouji was here to smooth the way.

'What's up?', he asked.

Shikamaru sat down on his couch, exhaled loudly, and began speaking in a tight tone that belied his inner feelings.

'Well, I have some good news, some bad news, and some downright irritating news.' he started.

'Go on'

'The good news is that I know who the traitor is.' There was a slight emphasis on the word traitor, almost as if he had used another, far more profane word in its place. Shino attributed it to the general Konohan hatred of traitors, of missing-nin in general, which he found understandable but not one he believed himself. After all, one of the main rites of becoming a full Aburame involved wondering whether to leave the village. He still remembered his father explaining it to him, that night after he failed his third chuunin exam. He had settled at the village gates for five hours before returning home, to find his father sitting in his living room with a strange pride exuding from him.

_It is one thing to doubt your village, Shino, and we all do it. But it is a truly great thing to know that that doubt is, in the end, unfounded, and that our village deserves more than our suspicion of it._

Shino suspected that the reason that so many Aburame were posted in diplomatic missions to other villages and Daimyos was that that was the only way to hide their thoughts of treachery from the village. Not that he blamed them. It was yet another reason he would have to reach for Hokage. If the status quo continued, in three generations every last Aburame would go missing-nin. It was a problem his elders found extremely troubling, but none of them were in a position to do anything about it. Not like he would be, if he managed to do what was slowly becoming the only logical choice.

'Who?' he asked.

'A boy called Uzumaki Naruto. He was in our year at the Academy, actually. Turns out there were a couple of things wrong with the mission briefing they gave us.'

In their year at the Academy? It was certainly possible, he supposed, seeing as how he remembered none of his fellow pupils who didn't make it past the genin exam. 'That's the bad news?'

'There's loads of bad news. For one thing, he left in our final year. The briefing said he left at ten, but the files I found', he nodded towards the stack of papers he'd dumped on the table between them, 'seem to say he only left at twelve. I don't know if the Hokage's office really doesn't know anything about the boy, or if they were deliberately trying to mislead me. I don't know which is worse.' Shikamaru said.

Shino grimaced. Bad intel was problematic, always. Whether it had to do with the colour of your target's favourite kimono or the position of her guards, bad intel was a lot worse than no intel at all. But the Hokage's mission reports rarely contained bad info, but they did so for specific reasons. Especially when it had to do with sensitive subjects like Akatsuki, or other villages' jinchuuriki, because misinformation might be the one thing they needed to prove to the other villages that they didn't have a clue. This kind of endangerment of their ninja would never have happened under the Sandaime, but the Godaime's approach was a lot more utilitarian, and worked better for the village, even if it did put individual ninja at more risk.

He motioned Shikamaru to go on.

'Then we have the problem of the daughter.'

Just as Shikamaru said it, it struck Shino.

'She's too old, isn't she?' he exclaimed.

'Exactly. There's no way she's sixteen _and_ his biological daughter. But there was no way the woman I met wasn't in her teens.'

'So she isn't his actual daughter, then?'

'Seems to be the only possibility. I'm still not sure of it, though. She made a huge song and dance about being the "Last of the Whirlpool". It just doesn't add up.' Shikamaru had visibly calmed down since he had arrived. 'Do you remember Iruka-sensei?'

Shino was a bit startled at the sudden change in topic, but he answered anyway.

'Chuunin, with a scar across his nose? Oh yes, he did some work for the Hokage, the Sandaime, that is', he appended, at Shikamaru's quizzical look, 'filing and general administrative stuff. I ran into him a couple of times while putting in reports, he was exclusively R&A for a good three years after Jiraiya-sama came to power. I don't know where he is now, though. Why?'

'He's the one who wrote these files, he was pretty close to Uzumaki before he ran away. He got pretty cut up about him leaving.' There was no small amount of fire in Shikamaru's eyes now.

'How cut up is cut up, exactly?' This was exactly the kind of emotional involvement Shino found irritating and unproductive. It clearly mattered to Shikamaru, though for what reason he could not guess.

'Read the files if you want to. It's obvious he left without a single consideration for anyone who cared about him.' Shikamaru clearly wanted to say a few more things, but he stopped himself with a sigh. 'I just really, really don't like traitors.'

Shino thought he was being a _bit_ harsh on him, especially seeing as how the boy had only been twelve. An orphan his age disappearing shouldn't even be on the radar of the ninja of Konoha. Why it merited Godaime-sama's personal attention was beyond his comprehension, and also the entire point.

They sat in silence for a while, digesting the information, until Shikamaru started speaking again.

'There's more.' he said stonily.

Shino wasn't sure if he wanted or needed to hear this, but his partner-in-crime thought it was important, and he couldn't just reject it out of hand.

'Guess who I ran into on the way to the Tower.'

'Surely not the Jinchuuriki from Kumo?' he said with a small grin. Shikamaru's team had nearly died that day, and only the timely intervention of Konoha's ANBU had stopped it. Nonetheless, most people he knew found it hilarious that they had returned unscratched from an S-rank infiltration of Lightning country, only to stumble upon their most dangerous ninja while crossing the border.

Shikamaru glared at him, before going on. 'If that was all, I might not have minded. No, it was Team 7.'

'And what did they have to say?' Shino said flatly.

'They overheard my lie at the restaurant, apparently. I_ knew_ Ino-chan was being loud.' Shino wasn't sure if Shikamaru was genuinely exasperated, of he was just amused at his friend's antics. Of course, if she hadn't been that loud, his grandfather probably would not have heard of it either. Probably. 'Threatened to expose me if I didn't do what they said, and gave me a cock-and-bull story about how they had information we might find useful, didn't even tell me what about. I told them to shove it, of course, but I'm still not sure. Damn S-class shinobi and their arrogance.'

The last bit faded into a mutter as Shikamaru seemed to curse to himself, but Shino ignored it. Attention was the last thing he wanted. His comrades in ANBU knew exactly how strong he was, and the more inaccurate the Bingo Book was about him, the better. The bit that _did_ interest him, however, was the offer of information. Uchiha was well placed in Konoha's shinobi structure, even if he _was_ cursed. Shikamaru might not think it worthwile to find out, but Shino could use everything he could get his hands on, and this seemed like a good opportunity.

'I think we should go talk to them', he said.

Shikamaru's head snapped up, and his face was completely bewildered.

'Why would you want to do that?' Shikamaru was equal parts stunned, annoyed and genuinely curious.

Shino's mind whirred as he tried to think of something more plausible than 'Because I'm running for Hokage, and I need all the help I can get.'

'Because it probably has something to do with Jiraiya-sama, and that can't be a bad thing.'

'How do you figure that?' Shikamaru asked.

'He wouldn't have offered, otherwise. The only information that could be of any use to us is something that has to do with the Hokage himself.' Or it could all be a bluff, but given that everyone in this potential conversation was a ninja, and a good one at that, that was not likely.

'No, I meant how is it useful.'

'At this point, _anything_ about the Hokage is useful. And anything that Uchiha knows is bound to be good.'

'You're actually considering this?' Shikamaru said.

'Not just considering. I'm thinking we should go, or if you don't want to come, at least I should go.' Shino's tone brooked no argument, even as his words were conciliatory.

Shikamaru looked at him, as if seeing him in a completely new light, which he probably was, before nodding once.

'Fine. If you want to do this, let's do this. We can probably head over there right now.'

Their eyes met, though Shino's were hidden, and they left the house together.

* * *

Haruno Sakura was the best. She was the best kunoichi in her year, she was the best medic-nin in her generation, and she was the best expert Konoha had on Uchiha Sasuke, outside of the man himself. This was not because she was the stupid fangirl she had once been, but rather because being his teammate for more than a decade taught you things about him you'd really rather not know.

However, if there was one thing she hated, however good she was at it, it was politics. It was exactly this sort of politics that Sasuke seemed to revel in, and made her skin crawl. The whole encounter with Shikamaru had been forced, and all three of them knew it, but she had done it anyway. Because no matter what Kakashi-sensei said, and she knew there had been many, many days she had agreed with him, in the end Sasuke was her teammate, her brother-in-arms, and that counted for more than anything else. So she did it, and now she waited at his house, the one he never used because he couldn't stand it, the one he'd threatened so many times to tear down, and she paced up and down the living room, waiting and dreading Shikamaru and Shino's entrance.

'Sakura, stop pacing.' To anyone else, it might have been an order. A harsh command. To her, it was only what it appeared to be. A request.

'How do we even know that they'll come? Or that they'll come tonight? Why won't they wait a few days, come tomorrow, or the day after?' Sakura was tense for more reasons than one, and being the best didn't make you invincible, it just made you much more aware of your own fragility.

Sasuke smiled one of his rare smiles, when he happy and sad and annoyed and joyous all at the same time, and Sakura could never, even after so many years, figure out what triggered them and what didn't.

'They'll either come tonight, or they won't at all. If we were anyone else, they might consider sweating us out, making us nervous. But we're not nervous, are we, Sakura?' Sakura burst out laughing at that. 'Ok, fine, but we're not going to get more nervous than we are now, that's for sure. And if _they_ were anyone else, they'd take some time to think about it, judge their positions, weigh up the pros and cons. but they're not just anyone. They're ANBU, and they're good. No, they'll have made their decision, and they're either heading over to us right now, or not giving us even a second's thought. Either way, it's only tonight to worry about, and I'm not worried.'

Sakura calmed down, just a little bit, at that declaration. Just knowing Sasuke wasn't worried made her feel better. They were Team 7, after all, even if Kakashi-sensei had left them, even if Ginjou-kun wasn't with them anymore. They were Team 7, and they didn't break.

'Are you sure about this? Telling them might not fix anything. For all we know, neither of them will get to Hokage.'

'One of them will get to Hokage. They might not be rated as such in the Book, but they're good shinobi. Nara could take me on in a fair fight and come out ahead, given enough time, and no fight with the Aburame would be fair, if he could help it. They're ninja to their bones, and if they want to make it, they will. What I find really odd is why they've teamed up.' That was a subtle question, because Sakura was good with people, good with behaviour, good where Sasuke wasn't, and he wouldn't mind knowing her take on it.

'It's obvious, really. They're the only competition they have. It makes sense, given they're both Konoha born and bred, to talk to each other instead of fighting each other. The only other ninja I can think of who has the skill, the charisma and the contacts is Sarutobi, and he hasn't wanted it since, well, you know...' Sakura trailed off.

And Sasuke did know. That was the point of this conversation, after all. The Sandaime and the Godaime, both terrific Hokage in their own way, but both so flawed as well. Their actions had had a huge impact on everyone in Konoha, and Sarutobi Konohamaru exemplified that. Grandson of the Sandaime, apprentice to the Godaime, summoner of Toads and Monkeys both, and yet so unwilling to take up any position of responsibility within the village. And it had everything to do with what Sasuke hoped to tell the two ninja approaching him, and what he hoped to get out of it.

'Will you tell them everything?' Sakura asked.

Sasuke looked at her, his gaze showing just a glint of the pain that had been with him since he was seven. He spoke slowly, choosing every word with care.

'It depends. I will have to tell them about the Curse if they are to understand what I need from them. I will have to tell them about Itachi and the Sandaime if they are to gain anything from this. But how much detail, whether or not I give them the background, the truth about the massacre and the Clan, all of that is up for grabs. If I want to see my brother's name on the Memorial, I can't just give away his secrets so lightly.'

'I still don't know about this. If Jiraiya-sama hears that we're trying to-'

Sasuke cut her off.

'If he hears, we're screwed, yes. But I don't think anyone in this conversation will tell him. They'd have to admit their lack of faith in his ability to lead to do so, and their rubbish about him getting old in age won't fly. I'm amazed Yamanaka believed it at all. And this is all too much to be a bluff. If he suspected us of leaking the story, he'd have us hauled up to his office and string us up by our toenails. They're going for Hokage, and they've picked a good time to do it. ANBU clan-heirs with experience, not to mention they're both extremely good at their specialisations. Nara's infiltrated Lightning, Earth, and Rice in less than ideal conditions, and he hasn't suffered a single casualty yet. Aburame's in R&A, and from what I hear, he's good at it. If they expose themselves well, they've got it made.' Sasuke said.

'Fine, fine.' Sakura huffed. 'If you've made up your mind already, I don't know why you need me here', she teased him.

Sasuke raised an eyebrow at her.

'Who would make tea for us otherwise?' he said.

'Chauvinistic barbarian!' Sakura muttered, a small grin belying her words.

They waited in silence for a few more minutes, until both heard the distant patter of footsteps.

Sasuke winked at her, a display of emotion so rare she remained dumbstruck for three seconds until she remembered herself. Letting out a breath she didn't know she had been holding, she brought the teapot onto the table, and sat down for what were surely going to be the longest three minutes of her life.

* * *

Shikamaru prided himself in being efficient. Why waste energy on doing stupid things when you could so easily save it and save time, too? But even he realised that simply running into someone else's home was a tad rude, so as they approached the Uchiha compound they both slowed to a walk.

Shikamaru was still unsure as to their reason for being here. It was highly unlikely that the information Uchiha and Haruno wanted to give them had anything at all to do with Uzumaki, or the Sandaime stepping down. But Shino had been unnaturally keen on coming to find out, to deal with Team 7 and all their drama. Something was off, somewhere, but Shikamaru had no idea what. He'd have to wait, and watch, and do so not with Ino or Chouji, whom he knew best, or with someone like Inuzuka Kiba, who gave away a lot of emotion and was proud of it, but by watching Aburame Shino, the most taciturn ninja in their generation.

It would bear some observation.

It was about Shino and his idiosyncrasies that Shikamaru was thinking when he realised they're reached the only house in the compound that still had lights on. Shino looked at him, and knocked once.

Uchiha opened the door, and said 'Good evening, Aburame-san, Nara-san. Please, come in.'

As they padded into his rather large living room, feeling like he'd just stepped into a viper's den, he noticed four still steaming cups of tea.

'Have some tea, and then perhaps we can move on to other things.' Haruno said.

Shikamaru was regretting this already.

* * *

_hello and welcome to you all! i hope you've been well and al that. some of the exciting reveal comes next chapter, sorry for the mostly filler nature of this one. i've got exams for the next couple months, so the updating will not be frequent, but i have a plan! like, sorta. kinda. it involves some people. and stuff. _

_just to make this clear, much of this fic examines Konoha, and not Naruto. so while i love vindication as much as the next person, i want to tell you what happens with the Hyuuga, and Jiraiya, and Konohamaru, a lot more than i want to tell you about Uzumaki. though there's a plan for that shit, too._


End file.
